n Women’s day I sat down to reflect upon and maybe write a small article
about all of the brave women who have dared the risks of making, or trying
to make, change in our corrupted world. There were women’s marches on a
global scale this year but I first looked at and saluted our own Canadian
women.

What
Canadian woman could not thrill at the risks Jody Wilson-Raybould and Jane
Philpott have taken in their careers to expose the wrong-doing of the
Trudeau government in seeking to cover up the sins of a powerful corporation
(SNC-Lavalin).

And then there was
the wonderful pride and courage exhibited by the many First Nation women who
risked arrest, and were arrested, for standing their ground in environmental
blockades. I also salute Dr. Alexandra Morton for her tireless and valuable
work on the deplorable fish farms that constantly threaten our wild salmon.

As a dual citizen, I
also felt a glow of appreciation when I heard of the young Democratic women
south of the border. They are trying desperately to revive their party new
again; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Llhand Oman, Tulsa Gabbard, and a few
others who are identifying as Democratic Socialists. And then I got to
Chelsea Manning.

Where to place her in the “woman as hero” category? Biologically, Manning is
not a female, but she presents as a woman, as the word “woman” is a social
designation. Manning looks, speaks and acts as a woman. I will go one step
further and say Manning also acts like a mother.

Gwen O'Mahoney (l) and Alexandra Morton in 2011. Voice photo.

In what way? In the way she has exposed the criminal drone killings of
children when she was in the military. Of course, it was criminal to kill
the adults as well in the material Manning sent to Wiki leaks, but the sight
of children scrambling to escape were heart rendering. Manning knew she was
taking terrible risks when she released the tapes.

The U.S. still has
the death penalty. Even if she wasn’t killed outright she knew she was
facing a possible lifetime in prison. She was given thirty-five years. That
she was pardoned after seven years was a last minute decision by President
Obama before leaving office.

Now the U.S. Secret
Services want her to appear before a secret grand jury to testify against Wiki
leaks and Julian Assange without a lawyer and only the prosecutors present. She
refused, saying she was against secret grand juries in principal, and she had
nothing to add to her previous military testimony. So Manning is back in prison.

How long will she say there? Will they be able to break Manning down in their
desperation to get something more on Julian Assange? Time will tell. In the
process Chelsea Manning has further clarified the word “feminism” for me.

The word can mean different
things to different women, but for me it has to be synonymous with the search
for motherly justice, which in turn means the demand for protection of all
children. Without this definition, feminism will mean little of importance to
the human race. Chelsea Manning has demonstrated for the world that she was
willing to put her very life where her heart was, and it was a motherly heart.
Chelsea Manning is my pick for Feminist Woman of the Year.